Yourself and the Air making waves

I wasn't familiar with Yourself and the Air before their EP, Friend Of All Breeds, landed in my Inbox. If you, like I was, are unfamiliar with the group, let me introduce you.

The Chicago group formed in 2006 and released their first EP, Cold Outside Brings Heavy Thoughts to Think, the next year. Now they're back with Friend of All Breeds, an extraordinary blend of post-rock instrumentals, pop-friendly melodies and pained vocals. Yourself and the Air's music captivates -- some tracks are creepy and haunting, others rousing and triumphant.

"Like The Pixies, Yourself and the Air are experts at building songs around distinct guitar movements that shift seamlessly into one another on a smooth rotation. Best of all, they do it without sounding like a shallow imitation." - Tiny Mix Tapes

"Friend Of All Breeds has a worried heart, certain it has been mistreated and desperate to understand why." - Illinois Entertainer

"The delicious music created by suburban Chicago 5-piece Yourself & the Air is urban and jangly, yet spaced-out with a dreamlike quality — akin to the soundtrack to a twisted kids movie delivered with an eerie calm, climactic structures and relentless rhythms." - chicago INNERVIEW

Yeah. So you should be a fan. You can hear Yourself and the Air on Future Perfect Radio now. Get to it.

Yourself on the Air was also recently featured on Daytrotter. Check out their session here.

Tour dates after the break!


7.16 - The Replay Lounge - Lawrence, KS
7.17 - Hi Dive - Denver, CO
7.18 - Bash's - Lubbock, TX
7.20 - Notsuoh - Houston, TX
7.21 - The Mohawk - Austin, TX
7.22 - Rubbergloves Rehearsal - Denton, TX
7.23 - Sticky Fingerz Chicken Shack - Little Rock, AR
7.24 - Spanish Moon - Baton Rouge, LA
7.25 - The Earl - Atlanta, GA
7.26 - The End - Nashville TN
7.27 - Bottletree - Birmingham, AL
7.28 - Southgate House Parlor - Newport, KY
7.29 - Circus - Columbus, OH
7.30 - Vollrath Tavern - Indianapolis, IN
7.31 - Turf Club - St. Paul, MN
8.1 - Subterranean - Chicago, IL

The Rural Alberta Advantage Need Your Help!

One of the albums I've been most excited about this year is The Rural Alberta Advantage's Hometowns. I got a tease of the Canadian group when they were first signed to Saddle Creek alongside UUVVWWZ, and I was hooked from the first 20 seconds of "Don't Haunt This Place."

I finally got the whole album yesterday, and boy does it live up to my expectations. A wonderful blend of twee, indie pop and folk -- like smooshing Sea Wolf and The Shins together. Every song offers something different, no two sound alike but every one is addictive.

And to add to the group's coolness, they're raising money to release a 7" single. You can pledge your support (and receive really cool goodies!) on KickStart. Check these guys (and gal) out, you will not be disappointed!

Pitchfork Music Fest schedule posted

The schedule for this year's Pitchfork Music Fest in Chicago, July 17-19, has been announced. Check out the full listing after the break. Additionally, it sounds like tickets for Sunday have been sold out. So, if you were hoping to catch The Vivian Girls, Grizzly Bear, M83, or The Flaming Lips, you're out of luck.

Of course, you can hear all of those acts, and indeed the whole Pitchfork line-up, on Future Perfect Radio's Pitchfork Music Fest channel. Tune in by clicking on the button below!



FRIDAY, JULY 17
8:40 (A) Built to Spill
7:20 (C) The Jesus Lizard
6:10 (A) Yo La Tengo...

5:00 (C) Tortoise

SATURDAY, JULY 18
8:40 (A) The National
8:30 (B) The Black Lips
7:30 (B) Matt and Kim
7:25 (C) Beirut
6:30 (B) Lindstrøm
6:15 (A) Doom
5:30 (B) Wavves
5:15 (C) Yeasayer
4:30 (B) Ponytail
4:15 (A) Final Fantasy
3:35 (B) Bowerbirds
3:20 (C) The Pains of Being Pure at Heart
2:40 (B) The Antlers
2:30 (A) Fucked Up
1:45 (C) Plants and Animals
1:45 (B) The Dutchess & The Duke
1:00 (A) Cymbals Eat Guitars
1:00 (B) Disappears

SUNDAY, JULY 19
8:40 (A) The Flaming Lips
8:30 (B) The Very Best
7:30 (B) Mew
7:25 (C) Grizzly Bear
6:30 (B) Vivian Girls
6:15 (A) M83
5:30 (B) Japandroids
5:15 (C) The Walkmen
4:30 (B) DJ/Rupture
4:15 (A) The Thermals
3:35 (B) Women
3:20 (C) Pharoahe Monch
2:40 (B) The Killer Whales
2:30 (A) Blitzen Trapper
1:45 (C) Frightened Rabbit
1:45 (B) Dianogah
1:00 (A) The Mae Shi
1:00 (B) Michael Columbia

A=Aluminum Stage, B=Balance Stage, C=Connector Stage

The Veils on tour

Add to our previous list of dream artist duos The Veils and The Faunts. Oh yeah. Well, at least The Veils are hitting some venues this summer (even if they're Faunts-less). Check out the dates after the break.


Thu, Jul 9 Vancouver BC Canada Media Club
Fri, Jul 10 Seattle WA US Chop Suey
Sat, Jul 11 Portland OR US Mississippi Studios
Mon, Jul 13 San Francisco CA US Bottom of the Hill
Tue, Jul 14 Costa Mesa CA US Detroit Bar
Wed, Jul 15 Los Angeles CA US Spaceland
Fri, Jul 17 Tucson AZ US Plush
Sun, Jul 19 Ausitn TX US Mohawk
Mon, Jul 20 Norman OK US Opolis
Wed, Jul 22 Minneapolis MN US 7th street entry
Thu, Jul 23 Chicago IL US Empty Bottle
Fri, Jul 24 Cleveland OH US Beachland Ballroom Tavern
Sat, Jul 25 Pontiac MI US Pike Room @ Crofoot
Mon, Jul 27 Toronto ON Canada Legendary Horseshoe Tavern
Tue, Jul 28 Montreal QUE Canada La Sala Rossa
Wed, Jul 29 Cambridge MA US TT THe Bears
Thu, Jul 30 New York NY US The Mercury Lounge
Fri, Jul 31 philadelphia PA US Johnny Brenda’s
Sat, Aug 1 Washington DC US Rock and Roll Hotel
Mon, Aug 3 Brooklyn NY US The Bell House

Match made in heaven: Asobi Seksu tour with Loney, Dear

You can say that again. Glitzy shoegaze connoisseurs Asobi Seksu will be touring with Sweden's electro-influenced rocker Loney, Dear. Dates are below.

What duos would you like to see roll into town? Here are a few of ours:

Bat for Lashes and Black Moth Super Rainbow
Yeasayer and The Builders and the Butchers
Sea Wolf and the Portland Cello Project
Foals and Coldplay (just kidding)

Sep 16 - Joe’s Pub (special acoustic performance) - New York, NY
Sep 23 - Local 506 - Chapel Hill, NC
Sep 24 - The Earl - Atlanta, GA

Sep 26 - The Mohawk - Austin, TX
Sep 27 - Hailey’s - Denton, TX
Sep 29 - Plush - Tucson, AZ
Sep 30 - Casbah - San Diego, CA*
Oct 1 - Troubador - Los Angeles, CA*
Oct 2 - Slims - San Francisco, CA*
Oct 3 - Doug Fir Lounge - Portland, OR*
Oct 4 - Chop Suey - Seattle, WA*
Oct 6 - Biltmore Cabaret - Vancouver BC*
Oct 9 - 7th Street Entry - Minneapolis, MN*
Oct 10 - Bottom Lounge - Chicago, IL*
Oct 11 - Grog Shop - Cleveland, OH*
Oct 12 - Horseshoe Tavern - Toronto ON*
Oct 13 - Il Motore - Montreal QC*
Oct 14 - Great Scott - Boston, MA*
Oct 15 - Maxwells - Hoboken, NJ*
Oct 16 - Bowery Ballroom - New York, NY*
Oct 17 - Johnny Brendas - Philadelphia, PA*

*w/Loney Dear

Deastro releases "Live at Lime With Deastro" EP

Can somebody tell Deastro he doesn't need to keep releasing music? He's got an LP coming out for pete's-sake, and yet he continues to put out EPs. First it was Grower, now Live at Lime with Deastro. Randolph Chabot is like some kind of awesome music machine! Okay though, this is a live EP, so it's not like Chabot had to give up a week in the studio or whatever. The music comes from a March 29 performance at Dubway Studios in New York. The EP can be yours for a whopping $4 at LimeWire's store here.

Check out our interview with Chabot here. Remember, Deastro's full-length Moondagger lands June 23 on Ghostly International. You can hear it now on Future Perfect Radio.

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart announce new tour dates

Being the blog-buzz band of the year, The Pains of Being Pure at Heart are by now familiar to all. (If not, they're the unholy love child of My Bloody Valentine, Jesus Mary Chain and the some idea of what the '80s were from 30 years down the road). The group has announced a slew of late summer/fall shows. Check them out below and after the break (where you're also find a PoBPaH vid, delightful).


Jun 18 2009 Cake Shop New York, New York #
July 10 2009 South Street Seaport New York, New York % (FREE)
July 18 2009 Pitchfork Fest Chicago, Illinois
July 20 2009 The Echo Los Angeles, California *
July 21 2009 The Rickshaw Stop San Fransisco, California *

July 23 2009 Backspace Portland, Oregon *
July 24 2009 Biltmore Cabaret Vancouver, BC *
July 25 2009 Capitol Hill Block Party Seattle, Washington
Sep 05 2009 Middle East Downstairs, Boston, Massachusetts &+
Sep 06 2009 La Sala Rossa Montreal, Quebec &+
Sep 07 2009 Horeshoe Tavern Toronto, Ontario &+
Sep 08 2009 Logan Square Auditorium Chicago, Illinois &+
Sep 09 2009 Stage Door at the Orpheum Madison, Wisconsin &+
Sep 10 2009 The Slowdown Omaha, Nebraska &+
Sep 12 2009 Monolith Festival Morrison, Colorado
Sep 13 2009 Kilby Court Salt Lake City, Utah &+
Sep 14 2009 Neurolux Boise, Idaho &+
Sep 17 2009 MFNW / Doug Fir Portland, Oregon &+
Sep 21 2009 Casbah San Diego, California &+
Sep 22 2009 Club Congress Tucson, Arizona &+
Sep 24 2009 Lola's Fort Worth, Texas &+
Sep 25 2009 The Mohawk Austin, Texas &+
Sep 26 2009 One Eyed Jacks New Orleans, Louisiana &+
Sep 27 2009 Club Downunder Tallahassee, Florida &+
Sep 28 2009 The Earl Atlanta, Georgia &+
Sep 29 2009 Local 506 Chapel Hill, North Carolina &+
Sep 30 2009 Black Cat, Washington DC &+
Oct 01 2009 Ottobar Baltimore, Maryland &+
Oct 05 2009 First Unitarian Church Philadelphia, Pennsylvania &+

% = w/ Zaza
# = w/ Crystal Stilts
* = w/ Girls
& = w/ The Depreciation Guild
+ = w/ Cymbals Eat Guitars

Castanets to release new album in September

It may not feel that long since we were enjoying the rough folk of Castanets' City of Refuge, but that was actually a whopping 8 months ago. Let's get with it people. Ray Raposa, never one for lengthy breaks in between albums, is prepping the release of Castanets' newest effort Texas Rose, The Thaw, and The Beasts for September 22.

The new album will be released on Castanets' home label Asthmatic Kitty. I've been assured the new album is "a whopper of a totally accessible pop record." Which kind of made me groan. What the hell?

There are plenty of "totally accessible" folk acts out there, and they're not that hard to find either. Don't get me wrong, I love me some Iron & Wine and Sea Wolf, but if I wanted something a little grittier, a little harder, a little odder, I had Castanets. And now I'm hearing the new album is "catchy," "well-defined" and "clean"?

Whatever. We get to judge for ourselves in September.

Violens remix MGMT track, want you to have it

Violens' remixed MGMT's "Doomed" as part of their debut EP V on Cantora Records. But, being such gents, the group is offering the remixed track to you for free! How kind. The New York group released the EP earlier this year.

The track itself is one of those remixes that, while not necessarily better than the original, encourages you to look more closely at the original work than you did before.

Check it out here.

Featured Artist: Daniel Watters

Daniel Watters is a talented singer/songwriter out of Los Angeles that combines some classic songwriting (citing influences like The Beatles and Paul Simon) with modern indie pop. His voice reminds one strongly of Stars, but his melodies range from quaint folk to lovable twee. His sophomore LP The Next Draft came out earlier this year. Watters impressively writes, produces and arranges every bit of his music. You can download a free EP from Watters, sampling the music found in The Next Draft, right here.

Listen to Daniel Watters on: Future Perfect Radio, New Music, Featured Artists, Au Naturale, Singer/Songwriter, Los Angeles

New Music Adds, 6/9

Here's the run-down of all the new music you can hear at Future Perfect Radio. To hear any of these (and more!), pick your channel at left and get listening!

Americans in France - Pretzelvania
Ape School - Ape School
British Sea Power - Man of Aran
The Builders and the Butchers - Salvation Is a Deep Dark Well
Charlene Kaye - Things I Will Need in the Past
Conor Oberst and the Mystic Valley Band - Outer South
Daniel Watters - Words EP
Findlay Brown - Love Will Find You
Frontier Folk Nebraska - Pearls
Hecuba - Paradise
Impossible Arms - Ripped in No Time
Mono - Hymn to the Immortal Wind
Polly Scattergood - Polly Scattergood
Pontiak - Maker
The Rhone Occupation - Would It Kill You to Talk This Out
Sonic Youth - The Eternal
Swan Lake - Enemy Mine
We Are the Storm - We Are the Storm EP

Featured Artist: Charlene Kaye

Born in Hawaii, but also having lived in Singapore, Hong Kong, Arizona, and Michigan (where she currently resides), Charlene Kaye is a songwriter whose music is as eclectic as her diverse geographical identity. Classically trained in the piano but self-taught at the guitar from age 13, she was keen to incorporate classical elements into her songwriting which often features violin, cello, upright bass and piano. But her songs are just as likely to include dobro, a Wurlitzer organ or even castanets - making her style just as multifaceted as her orchestration and often difficult to categorize. Her orchestrations, often grandiose like Rufus Wainwright ("Andromeda," "Magnolia Wine"), can also be sparse and haunting ("Bonnie Parker," "Human), all tied together with her rich alto, which bears traces of Jenny Lewis, Regina Spektor and even Feist. Released in October, Things I Will Need in the Past explores notions of time as a malleable object and the idea that everything has a cyclical nature, especially the ins and outs of love. Read more here.

Listen to Charlene Kaye on: Future Perfect Radio, Featured Artists, Au Naturale, Singer/Songwriter, Great Lakes Soundtrack

Sonic Youth's Kim Gordon attacks (sort of) Radiohead's "In Rainbows" pricing plan

"They did a marketing ploy by themselves and then got someone else to put it out," Sonic Youth bassist Kim Gordon told The Guardian on Friday. "It seemed really community-oriented, but it wasn’t catered towards their musician brothers and sisters, who don’t sell as many records as them. It makes everyone else look bad for not offering their music for whatever...It was a good marketing ploy and I wish I’d thought of it! But we’re not in that position either. We might not have been able to put out a record for another couple of years if we’d done it ourselves: It’s a lot of work. And it takes away from the actual making music."

Wired's Scott Thill had this to say about the episode:

It seems disingenuous to complain that Radiohead’s model is responsible for making other bands — especially ones like Sonic Youth, which admitted in the Guardian interview that it spent many unhappy years on the major label Geffen — look bad...Gordon’s condemnation as a ploy of what by all accounts was a very successful experiment in online distribution just because it didn’t adhere to an imaginary solidarity ("brothers and sisters?") or a traditional model that has obviously come and gone is bad faith...Radiohead, for all its warts and so-called ploys, seems like the band of the future. Especially when compared to Sonic Youth, whose latest effort, The Eternal, has been hailed as a throwback to the days of Evol and Daydream Nation. Good luck turning back the clock, Sonic Youth. I’ll be rooting for you. Musically speaking.

I will say that many local Chicago bands I spoken to (Snowsera for one) feel that they absolutely have to make their music free now. Snowsera's reasoning: no one's heard of us, so why would they pay $5 for an EP of 4 songs?

As a hypothetical response, one may say: "Because your music is good, and if it's not then you won't sell albums and you'll stop playing music." But that's a little unfair -- an unsigned band needs some way to help themselves get noticed, and many see giving their music away free as a great way to do so. They figure they'll then make money from shows, merchandise, or album sales in the future when people are willing to pay for their music.

This, of course, is not exactly what Radiohead did. They were trying to avoid the pains of traditional marketing (as Thill points out). And the pay-whatever scheme worked for Radiohead because, well, they're Radiohead. They don't need that traditional marketing anymore.

But Gordon's argument that this "makes everyone else look bad" for not doing the exactly same thing as Radiohead is wrong. People -- and that includes musicians -- aren't stupid. Independent, unknown bands aren't going to follow exactly in Radiohead's footsteps. They're going to adapt the strategy to their own needs.

In the end, Radiohead's strategy just delivered another tool in the independent artist's toolbox: a way to promote themselves and get themselves noticed without the aid of a major label. I believe that's something Sonic Youth would fully endorse.

Incidentally, we're featuring Sonic Youth on Future Perfect Radio this week for their new album The Eternal. Check it out here.

Featured Artist: The Builders and the Butchers

Where The Decemberists evoke fantastical sea voyages and epics on the scale of classic English literature, Portland city-mates The Builders and the Butchers are a whole different kind of indie folk. This is the soundtrack to Cormac McCarthy's Blood Meridian, the sad songs of the Great Depression or the Dust Bowl, where life is hard and death is even harder. It's Southern gothic, I suppose. It's not hard to get lost in the Portland quintet's somber music, each song weaves its own tale, with storylines branching between tracks and even between albums. Their sophomore album, Salvation Is a Deep Dark Well, lands on June 16. It's a triumph of chilling melodies, heart-wrenching stories and rousing anthems. Hear it now on Future Perfect Radio.

Listen to The Builders and the Butchers on: Future Perfect Radio, New Music, Featured Artists, Lollapalooza '09, Au Naturale, Portland

Read more on The Builders and the Butchers here.

Featured Artist: Today the Moon, Tomorrow the Sun

Upcoming dance-infused group Today the Moon, Tomorrow the Sun have been working their way up through the Atlanta music scene. The quintet was picked by local critics as one of the best bands of 2008, lauding the band with compliments and blessings. The group capped off the year with a new EP, The Lightning Exhibit. The catchy electronica-pop found in the album have done much to bring the group further into the limelight. They're, without a doubt, one of the best emerging Atlanta artists out there.

Listen to Today the Moon, Tomorrow the Sun on: Future Perfect Radio, Featured Artists, Georgia, Dance Rock

Featured Artist: Deastro (with Interview!)

Deastro is a busy act. Randolph Chabot is the man behind the project, an electronica producer out of Sterling Heights, Michigan. He's been releasing music under a number of guises, putting out his first album when he was 12. Deastro looks to be his big chance though. Chabot started the act after moving back to Detroit from Chicago and finding himself inspired by what he found in the city. Deastro's early recorded work attracting the attention of local critics, and Chabot soon found himself signed to Ghostly International. His debut LP on the label, Moondagger, arrives on June 23. Just recently though, Chabot released an EP online titled Grower for free online. The flood of music, not to mention the indie electronica's amazing quality, has done much to draw new fans to Deastro.

Listen to Deastro on: Future Perfect Radio, New Music, Featured Artists, A Chance to Cure, Dance Rock, Great Lakes Soundtrack

Interview:

(Interview with Randolph Chabot of Deastro)

Future Perfect Radio: I've read that you first started making albums when you were 12 years old. How did you first get into music?

Randolph Chabot: My uncle bought me a guitar when I was like seven and taught me basic chords and before that I sang in choir since I was in the first grade, or something like that. My mom tells me that I was always singing and I still am. Everywhere I go I am always humming.

FPR: Your LP Moondagger arrives on June 23. What was the recording process like for that album?

Chabot: It was really fast, we laid it down in 4 days along with two B-sides that aren't released yet. We were expecting to just make an EP and a few weeks before we started recording our label asked us if we could make a full length. So we did. I was still writing lyrics up to 5 minutes before I had to lay down vocals. The studio we recorded in was (I say was because it is no more it went out of business; Billy Corgan bought the Helios board from them, I guess he has 3 now or something like that) located in the historic Capitol Park Building. The space had this eerie nostalgia about it that made us feel like we were creating something with antiquity, even though people say we make music from the future.

FPR: Everyone is now very familiar with your free EP Grower. Should we expect a similar feel in Moondagger?

Chabot: Yeah, a lot of it is pretty similar I wrote "Pyramid Builders" off of Moondagger the same time that I was starting to work on a lot of the songs from Grower.

FPR: I've seen that you drew influence for the Grower EP from human experiences in Detroit. Does Moondagger have a similar root?

Chabot: Yes, although Grower has more direct influences then Moondagger does, because I moved to Detroit right after we finished recording Moondagger. I really like how Carl Sandburg made the everyday bigger, that is the way I right music too. Me and my friend Matt were talking the other night about our obsession with Legos as kids and how our neighborhood here in Detroit resonates with that part of us. This interest in the microcosm of human relationships and our continued state of wonder and discovery that makes us want to take it apart and rebuild it so we can hopefully understand better.

FPR: Favorite bands of the moment?

Chabot: So many good bands right now, Ariel Pink, Women, Benny Stoofy (local band), Prussia (local Detroit band as well), Animal Collective, Mahjongg, Gang Gang Dance, M83, Deerhunter, Dirty Projectors, Skeletons, Lucky Dragons, High Places, Grizzly Bear, Dan Deacon, Wilderness, Wavves, Holy Shit, John Maus, Steve Reich, Nico Muhly, Grouper, Icy Demons, White Rainbow. I love how much music is being made these days! Cheer!!!

Win a copy of Yeah Yeah Yeahs' "It's Blitz!"

Want a copy of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs' new album It's Blitz! ? Of course you do! Who wouldn't?

To win a free copy, all you have to do is take our listener survey, found here. It's only 3 pages, with less than a dozen questions. Totally painless, we swear. Just answer the questions, leave your email address, and cross your fingers!

Take the survey here!

Passion Pit's "The Reeling" remixed, again

As if we didn't know already, Passion Pit's "The Reeling" is awesome remix fodder. Taking their shots this time is Miike Snow. Download the remix for free here.

Also, remember that Passion Pit's amazing new full-length Manners is playing in full at Future Perfect Radio.

Tune in today!

Featured Artist: Passion Pit

It's now well-known that Boston's hit electronica act Passion Pit began as Michael Angelakos' present for his girlfriend on Valentine's Day. Chunk of Change, the band's first EP, was that gift. As you might expect, the EP went from a private gift between lovers to falling into the hands of Frenchkiss label execs and artists like Death Cab for Cutie.

Passion Pit, now a full-fledged band, toured with the latter and signed with the former. Here in 2009, Passion Pit released their first full-length Manners on May 19. It's a spectacular album, filled with melodic pop deliciousness. At the heart of the album are dark lyrics, but it'll take the most focused of listeners to pick up on the somberness beneath the layers of sunny electronica and falsetto vocals. You'll find whatever you're looking for in Manners, it's an album that adapts to the listener. Try it out for yourself on Future Perfect Radio, where it's playing in full.

In case you missed that last line, I'll repeat myself: Passion Pit's Manners is playing IN FULL on Future Perfect Radio. Every song. Cause every song deserves your full attention. Launch any of the channels below to hear the album.

Try If You Like: The Postal Service, Frankmusik, Datarock

Listen to Passion Pit on: Future Perfect Radio, New Music, A Chance to Cure, Dance Rock

The Vivian Girls' sophomore album due in fall

What? What's this? A new Vivian Girls album? I thought we were all just getting tired of their first LP, and here they come along with something new to look forward to! Sure puts those bands that need 2+ years (or 3+, I'm looking at you Muse) in between albums to shame. So congrats to The Vivian Girls for this, as if we needed more reasons to love them.

The punchline? Apparently the band "took their time" with this album, where the last one was really rushed -- at least, according to guitarist Cassie Ramone. Wait, it gets better. That means, this new album took a whopping 6 days to record instead of the 3 needed to record their self-titled debut.

The album, titled Everything Goes Wrong, is scheduled for release on September 8 through In The Red. That's the artwork above. It'll pack 13 tracks and clock in at no longer than 45 minutes -- that's double the length of their debut which was 22 minutes. Indeed, "the songs are longer," said drummer Ali Koehler. "I think it's moodier. I think we have basically the same influences as on our first album, but with more influences added."

So to sum up, The Vivian Girls took an amazingly long time (6 days; 1 year since debut LP) to record a really long (44 minutes) album. What's not to love?

The Builders and the Butchers embark on summer U.S. tour

After a few weeks of listening to The Builders and the Butchers' Salvation Is a Deep Dark Well, I'm absolutely in love with the group's darkly-tinged folk rock. It's The Decemberists plus a strain of Great Depression sadness, or horror-flick fright, or Blood Meridian southwestern gore. Or maybe all of the above. There's something intrinsically uncomfortable about listening to the Portland group's unique melodies, but it's entrancing.

I recently drove south through Indiana on a camping trip, choosing local roads over interstate highways. The Builders and the Butchers provided the soundtrack as I passed by abandoned truck stops, collapsed barns and the ominous Benton County wind farm. Everything takes on a more sinister look with Salvation Is a Deep Dark Well playing, even in the sunshine of a fine early summer day. I highly recommend checking them out.

The Builders and the Butchers will be embarking on a U.S. summer tour in support of their new album, which is scheduled for release on June 30 through Gigantic Music. Dates found after the break.

* Illinois Supporting
Thursday 06/18 Portland Wonder Ballroom
Friday 06/19 Seattle Neumos
Wednesday 07/15 San Francisco Bottom of the Hill
Thursday 07/16 Visalia Cellar Door
Friday 07/17 Los Angeles Spaceland
Saturday 07/18 San Diego Casbah
Monday 07/20 Salt Lake Urban Lounge
Tuesday 07/21 Denver Larimer Lounge
Wednesday 07/22 Wichita Fischhaus
Thursday 07/23 Lawrence Replay Outside
Friday 07/24 St Louis Off Broadway with those darlins
Saturday 07/25 Cincinnati Mad Hatter
Monday 07/27 Cleveland Beachland
Tuesday 07/28 DC DC 9
Wednesday 07/29 Philadelphia Johnny Brendas
Thursday 07/30 Brooklyn Bell House
Friday 07/31 New York Pianos
Saturday 08/01 Boston TT the Bears
Monday 08/03 Detroit Pike Room
Tuesday 08/04 Pittsburgh Brillobox
Wednesday 08/05 Columbus Skully's
Thursday 08/06 Indianapolis Vollrath
Friday 08/07 Chicago Lollapalooza
Sunday 08/09 Madison High Noon TBA
Monday 08/10 Minneapolis 400 Bar
Wednesday 08/12 Missoula Palace